Monday, June 13, 2011

Chocolate Custard Gloves

I didn't think I would bake today, instead trying to clean the house and then have a bit of relaxing time before I have to get Harry to swimming, then do his ballet practice (only 2 weeks until his exam!), and finally get ready for my night shift tonight. It's a busy life being a full time shift-working mum! However even though I didn't have any intentions of cooking clearly even the best laid plans and so on and so on and so on....

I always have a heap (and I mean a heap), of recipes that I have cut out of newspapers or printed out from the many blogs I follow, sitting on my cookbook holder which sits on my bench. It drives me crazy every time I look at the pile as it looks so messy but I know that once they make their way to my recipe box, I'll never see them again. The problem is that I also have a ridiculous amount of cooking magazines and cookbooks to complicate the matter further. I KNOW I'm not the only one with this affliction so that at least gives me some comfort....and er justification to keep on accumulating....

This recipe is one form Dean Brettschnider's book called 'Global Baker'. I have had my eye on this recipe for ages and after baking so many cakes and biscuits lately, thought it was time for a change. These buns are loosely based on something commonly found in China where Dean has a store/bakery. He describes this as being a soft sweet buns with a squidgy chocolate custard filling. This is an accurate description. The custard is made first and left in the fridge covered to cool while you prepare the dough. The dough itself is a breeze to make and is really quite sticky. Dean warns against adding anymore flour as this is how it's meant to be but despite that it is still pretty easy to work with.

These buns are delicious. The dough is slightly orange flavoured thanks to the zest and this is just delicious with the lovely rich chocolate custard. They are not a fussy thing to make and the randomness of how they fall onto the baking sheet only add to their appeal. I'll take these to work tonight and I'm sure they won't last long. If you are scared of yeast don't be. Give these a go as they are super easy and pretty forgiving.

Whisk the egg yolks and first quantity of sugar together until pale in colour, then whisk in the flour to form a paste and set aside. Heat the milk, the second measure of sugar and the vanilla into a pot and bring to the boil. Take off the heat then stir in the egg mixture. Return to the heat and cook over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes until it has thickened. Stir all the time. Take off the heat, stir in the chocolate and stir until it is well combined and melted. Put into a bowl, cover with clingfilm (push it onto the surface so it doesn't form a skin), and put into the fridge to cool.

Dough300g high grade flour5g salt25g melted butter25g sugarzest of one orange5g or 1 tsp active dried yeast1 small egg150ml water

Place all ingredients into a large bowl (I used my Kitchen Aid) and mix to form a dough mass. Then knead about 10 mins. The dough will be sticky but don't keep adding flour. I think it would be much easier to do this in a machine rather than by hand.

Put the dough into an oiled bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave in a warm place until risen (about doubled in size).

Tip onto a floured surface and using a rolling pin roll out into a rectangle about 45cm long and 20cm wide. Using a palette knife spread 2/3rds of the chocolate custard over the whole surface of the dough. Then fold the two ends onto the centre so the edges meet. Then spread the rest of the custard over one half and fold that over (so you have 4 layers of dough and 3 layers of custard).

Cut into strips (I got 9 out of the recipe), and carefully place them onto a baking tray (line with baking paper) cut side up. Cover with clingfilm and leave for about 35 mins.

Preheat the oven to 190C. Brush with an egg wash and bake 15-18 mins until they are light, golden brown.

Brush with a sugar glaze when they come out of the oven (made by bring 60g sugar and 200ml water to the boil) and are still hot.

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My name is Megan and I live in Auckland with my partner Dons and two sons Reuben and Harry. I started this blog because I love to bake and cook...although I have to say that baking is my real passion. I work in NICU and work a lot of night shifts which means that I always have somewhere to take my baking (so I don't eat it all). I hope you enjoy my blog.